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The 80s
The 80s are a raider gang or tribe who roam the Great Basin Desert in the former U.S. States of Nevada and Utah on and near the pre-war highway Interstate 80. The tribe is known for their use of pre-war vehicles, particularly motorcycles, as well as their use of Interstate 80 signs as badges rank and identification. The highest ranking members havean actual Interstate sign attached to the chest pieces of their armor, while lower-ranked members simply have a white number "80" painted on their armor. History The 80s are a gang descended from pre-war motorcycle gangs in Nevada and northwestern Utah. After the bombs fell, the gangs took up raiding, using their motorcycles and stockpiles of weapons to steal anything of such as food, medical supplies, vehicles, weapons, and livestock. By 2100s, the gangs had unified under a single leader or Overboss, who led the gang out of their base in a fortified garage in Elko, Nevada. Under the overboss are dozens of bands of 80s, based in places like Fernley, Lovelock, Winnemucca, Battle Mountain, Carlin, Wells, and Wendover. At their heyday in the first half of the 2100s, the 80s roamed as far east as Salt Lake City and as far west as Sacramento, making traveling along I-80 dangerous for all but the most well-protected caravans. While they did not typically attack large towns and cities, both as they preferred less-well defended targets and so that they had a market to sell goods stolen in their raids, the 80s tactics of attacking caravans and isolated ranches made them the targets of local militias, most notably the Desert Rangers. The decline of the 80s began in the late 2240s and early 2250s, when the New California Republic annexed Sacramento and later the city of Truckee and the Lake Tahoe area to the east. This essentially pushed the 80s back to the east of the Sierra Nevada. In 2252, Vault City reluctantly joined the NCR in exchange for protection from harassment off their caravans by the 80s. Starting in the 2260s, the NCR launched a military campaign against the 80s, driving them out of the cities of Lovelock and Winnemucca. In addition to the NCR to the west, the 80s also faced two new threats from the south and east. Firstly, the White Legs, a raider tribe that had previously been located in the Wasatch Mountains east of the Great Salt Lake began expanding their territory. While the White Legs lacked motor vehicles and were far less technologically advanced than the 80s, their sheer brutality allowed them to cause devastating attacks on 80s outposts around Salt Lake City. The second, and far greater threat from the east came in the form of Caesar's Legion, who advanced north along Interstate 15 to the Great Salt Lake, pushing the 80s out of the area west of the Bonneville Salt Flats. As of 2281, the 80s remained only in the area between Battle Mountain, Nevada and Wendover, Utah. Tactics The 80s make use of hit-and-run raids, and are known for being able to move quickly across the desert through the use of surviving pre-war cars and motorcycles. The 80s do not have any interest in actually holding or controlling any territory beyond the fortified garages that are the bases of the various bands, and unlike the White Legs, the 80s do not tend to attack large towns or cities. This is both because they prefer to prey on less well-defended targets such as caravans, ranches, and brahmin drives, and also because they participate in the wasteland economy, selling stolen goods to unscrupulous merchants in cities such as Lovelock, Elko, and New Reno, and using caps to buy weapons, ammunition, chems, and vehicle parts. By the 2150s, the 80s started kidnapping survivors of caravan attacks and selling them to slavers to generate further profits. Structure The structure of the 80s very loose, consisting of multiple bands spread throughout the Great Basin, each with their own heirarchy, under the overall control of an Overboss. Even the Overboss does not have complete control over the individual factions, and their position, like most positions in raider hierarchy, is based on pure brutality and ruthlessness. It is not uncommon for bosses or even the overboss to be overthrown in violent coups or for lower-ranking members to challenge a boss to fight to the death over leadership of the gang. In general, the higher-ranked members of the 80s drive or operate mounted guns on various pre-war vehicles, while the lower-ranking member ride along as passengers, typically crowding into the back of pick-up trucks. The highest-ranking members possess motorcycles, the most highly prized vehicles of all. Equipment Using mechanical knowledge passed down from their biker gang ancestors, the 80s are well-known for maintaining and using pre-war vehicles. These are typically civilian vehicles such as cars and pick-up trucks, as well as some larger semi-trucks, all of them modified with a wide array of weapons and armor, including mounted machine guns or rocket launchers, spikes, battering rams, and even side-mounted blades designed to cut down unfortunate victims as they drive by. In general, a single band of 80s may have anywhere from three to ten vehicles. The most highly prized vehicles among the 80s, however, are working motorcycles, which are reserved for the leaders of individual bands. The only vehicles that are prized as highly as motorcycles are pre-war military vehicles, which are extremely rare and are only known from three examples. In terms of weapons, like most raiders, the 80s will use anything they can find, and lack any form of standardization. Weapons such as Browning M2 machine guns, miniguns, improvised cannons, rocket launchers, and occasionally even gatling lasers, ATGMs, or autocannons are mounted on their vehicles. Personal weapons are even more highly varied, including practically any type of small arms available, though heavy weapons such as belt-fed machine guns, anti-materiel rifles, and rocket launchers are particularly prized. Common Vehicles *Ford Atomic Cruiser *Chryslus Corvega *Chryslus Fusion Flea *Chryslus Highwayman *Ford F300 Atomic Pickup *Chryslus Pick-R-Up *BMW 580 Fusion *Buick Special Rivera *various motorcycles (Harley Davidson and Lone Wanderer, and Boudicca-78/S makes common) *Various trucks and buses Common Small Arms Famous Individual Vehicles *'The Avalanche:' Modified pre-war snowplow with armored cab, reinforced dozer blade for ramming and overturning vehicles, and armored bet with six firing ports for personal weapons. Operated by the Tahoe band of the 80s. Destroyed 2254 by NCR Army. *'The Battlebus': Armored vehicle on a school bus chassis with up to 30mm of steel plate and four mounted miniguns, one each corner. *'Firestarter': Pre-war airport fire engine taken from Lovelock Airport, body armored with 40mm steel armor and slat armor to protect against RPGs. In an ironic reversal of it original function, the water cannon was converted into a flamethrower. Destroyed by NCR Army 2276 in operations against the 80s. *'The Rocketeer': Technical armed with quad-shot FGM 219 missile launcher. *'Hell on Wheels': Pre-war M51 Infantry Fighting Vehicle, one of only three military vehicles known to be used by 80s. Category:Post-War Factions Category:Raiders